This year's SUBWAY Franchisee of the Year awards were presented to the overall winners of the multi-unit and single unit owner categories from North America and the chain's international emerging and developed markets. Selected from among the chain's more than 15,000 franchisees from around the world, the six recipients are: Morganna Barbosa of Brazil, Gustavo and Luis Ribeiro of Brazil, Christian Neipp and Monika Boden of Germany, Markku Jyrkiainen of Finland, Lyudmila Khononov of Brooklyn, New York, and Kent Yoder of Elkhart, Indiana.
"The franchisee is the heart and soul of the Subway family. We know that our success depends upon the initiative they take as individuals and their ability to work as a team. We take great pride in the hard work and effort made by the thousands of franchisees throughout the world and in the millions of customers that they serve,” says the SUBWAY restaurant chain's Director of Development, Don Fertman.
In addition to the overall winners, the regional Franchisee of the Year recipients are :
International Emerging Market Multi-Unit Owners: Morganna Barbosa of Brazil Dominique Nenan and Franck Petit of France Hemal and Vibha Shah of India Eliud Fernando Elizondo Ochoa of Mexico Feng Xia of China Alejandro Rocha of Venezuela
Emerging Market Single Store Owners Gustavo and Luis Ribeiro of Brazil Istvan Daboczy of Hungary Aladina Goulamhoussen of France Sudhish and Vani Goenka of India Carlos Enrique and Rosa Iliana Frias Cortes of Mexico Martin Schaafsma and Wybe Blom of the Netherlands Jia Wei and Yi Yang of China
International Developed Market Multi-Unit Owners Cheryl and Russell Price of Queensland, Australia David Coelho of Trinidad and Grenada Jacqueline and Stephen Jones of Panama Christian Neipp and Monika Boden of Germany Ibrahim Hussain and Ali Al Fardan of the UAE Gregory Blakney of Singapore John Usher of England Najam Mohammed of Scotland
International Developed Market Single Store Owners: Diane Askew of Queensland, Australia Cynthia Swanson of Puerto Rico Gul and Luz Adriana Correa de Tolani of Panama Roger Vasta of Germany Burkhard Voss of Germany Hamdan Sultan Al Kadhim, Flettin Marattukulam and Jojo Menonweedu of the UAE Markku Jyrkiainen of Finland Yun Goh Teo of Singapore Farhat Abbas of England David Grier of Scotland
North America Multi-Unit Owners: Dean Heidt of Saskatchewan, Canada Behzad Cohan-Hedyood and Sukhinderpal Gill of Los Angeles, CA George and Susan Bailey of Richmond, KY. Esther Yoder of Gainesville, FL Jagmohan Sandhu of Ellcott, MD Lyudmila Khononov of Brooklyn, NY Kevin Perreault & Steven Barkley of Billings, MT Gholam Ali Samadi of Corpus Christi, TX Jonathan McCorsley in Bemen, GA Bonnie Morgan of Rapids, IL Vikas Sondhi of Bellingham, WA
North America Single Store Owners: Jerry Solyma and Yvonne Von Grad of Saskatchewan, Canada Maria Place of Ramona, CA Kent Yoder of Elkhart, IN George Cernansky of Tampa, FL Mostofa Mohammad of Arlington, VA Lue Titus of Milford, CT Dora and Javier Idez of Little Neck, NY Valerie Simondi of Buffalo, WY Roderick Sims of Ruston, LA Jack Jivan of Manning, SC Robert and Vickie Lynn O'Neill of Maryville, IL Jon Newmark of Everett, WA
Competing among 54 regional finalists from around the globe, the Franchisees of the Year are honored for accomplishments such as adding new stores, building sales, and increasing profitability while also achieving excellent store evaluations.
The recipients of the 2008 SUBWAY Development Agent of the Year awards are Raghu and Rohit Marwaha of California, Luis Ribeiro of Brazil, and Paul Heyes of Northern Ireland.
Often from the ranks of franchisees themselves, and chiefly responsible for building and managing a geographical territory, SUBWAY development agents, or DAs, provide their local franchisees with the necessary support and expertise to run a successful business.
Selected from among many outstanding candidates in the U.S., Canada, and the chain's developed and emerging markets from around the globe, Development Agents of the Year are honored for their accomplishments in developing the SUBWAY brand within their territory, increasing sales and profitability and the level of service and support provided to their local franchisees.
"One of the many groups that play an important role in moving the Subway business forward is the development agent. They have set records in franchise sales, leases signed and restaurants opened time after time. They work tirelessly to implement the programs and initiatives that are helping our franchisees grow their businesses,” Fertman says.
The SUBWAY brand has been honored as the number one franchise opportunity in Entrepreneur magazine's "Annual Franchise 500” listing for 15 of the past 21 years, and was ranked as "America's Top Global Franchise” for 2008.
